Ishamael
| rank=Chosen | title=Ba'alzamon | height=Tall | hair=Black | eyes=Fiery | gender=Male | mentioned= | appeared= | lastmentioned= | lastappeared= }} Ishamael (ih-SHAH-may-EHL; Old Tongue: Betrayer of Hope) is the most powerful of the Forsaken as well as being their leader. He is incredibly intelligent, and has profound insight into the nature of the Wheel of Time and the struggle between the Dark One and the Dragon. He is unique among the Forsaken as being the only member of the group who did not join for the promise of power or immortality (at least not per se), but because his logic concluded that the Dark One must inevitably win against the Dragon, and therefore the only path was to join him and rule for a time. All of the other Forsaken believe him to be insane, though some of Ishamael's statements which are taken to be mad are in fact simply esoteric beyond what the other Forsaken are capable of understanding (his brief talk on Chaos Theory for example). He is also fairly disdainful of the other Forsaken, regarding them all as fools for not understanding the nature of the Dark One, and for believing that he will hold to his promise of giving them power and immortality. As Ishamael, he was utterly insane during his last years, though he retained his intelligence and insight. As Moridin, it is said of him that, though he now has much more control over himself, this self-control hides a greater madness than before. Also, he tends to have violent mood swings; for instance going from curious to murderously enraged to calm all in the span of a few seconds when he sees Aviendha unravel her gateway. Several comments from Graendal suggest that, before his conversion to the Shadow, he may have been much like Rand. Age of Legends Elan Morin Tedronai was a noted philosopher and theologian who wrote several influential books, among them Analysis of Perceived Meaning, Reality and the Absence of Meaning and The Disassembly of Reason. Elan Morin was often considered too esoteric for popular appeal. He also believed that the war between the soul of Lews Therin and the Dark One had occured since the beginning of time, recurring in cycles of the Wheel of Time. However, after his descent into madness through sustained use of the True Power, he seemed to believe that he himself was part of the eternal conflict between The Dragon and the Dark One He was one of the first in the Age of Legends to publicly declare himself for The Shadow. He announced his betrayal at a conference of Aes Sedai in the Hall of Servants, informing them of what it was they faced. His announcement sparked massive riots.He was given the name Ishamael by the people: Betrayer of Hope. He was the Dark One's greatest champion and the only one being equal to Lews Therin in the One Power. Although he never held a field command, he was defeated by Lews Therin at the gates of Paaran Disen. At some stage he is humbled by Lews Therin in the Hall of Servants. Half-Sealed? When the Dark One's Prison was sealed, it is thought that Ishamael was only partially sealed behind it, (in contrast to Aginor and Balthamel who were merely sealed too close to the edge, and thus susceptible to the passage of time), and his soul was allowed to be released in the world from time to time. In fact, Ishamael may not have been initially bound at all, since he visited Lews Therin Telamon (apparently in person) after the seals on the Dark One's prison had been placed (as Ishamael speaks of the sealing in past tense, and Lews Therin is already mad). After the seals were placed and saidin was tainted, Ishamael told the now-mad Lews Therin to kill his family , and then Healed him so that he understood what he had done. This realization is what caused Lews Therin to commit suicide. Aran son of Malan son of Senar (born roughly 50 AB) had a theory based on Ishamael being thrown out and touching the world for specific periods of time. Aran had heard claims that people had encountered him as long as 40 years after the sealing of the Bore. Using lost manuscripts, Aran concluded it might have taken some time for Ishamael to be brought into the prison with the remainder of the Forsaken, and might possibly have been "thrown out" in a regular cycle. There is ample evidence to now support this hypothesis such as interviews from Darkfriends saying that as early as 983 NE they were receiving instructions from someone calling himself Ba'alzamon. It's possible the cycle lasts a 1000 years, as the Trolloc Wars, War of the Hundred Years, and the current time are all a thousand years apart. Ishamael.]] Ba'alzamon Possibly due to his own madness, Ishamael started calling himself Ba'alzamon ("Heart of the Dark" in the Trolloc tongue) and was revered by Trollocs and feared by Myrddraal. He ravaged the world when he sent the Trollocs forth, causing the Trolloc Wars. The long years and the strain of being torn between the world and a possibly endless sleep seem to have driven Ishamael insane; in addition, he was one of the privileged few that the Dark One allowed to touch the True Power, a raw source of energy akin to the One Power but emanating directly from the Dark One, and in some ways more powerful. Use of this gift was even more addictive than saidar or saidin however, and it drove users mad before they died. In any case, Ishamael came to believe that he was part of the eternal struggle between the Dragon and the Shadow, and that he had been a part of that struggle not only in the Age of Legends, but throughout time. He may have honestly believed that he was the Dark One somehow; in any case, due to his appearance and leadership of the Shadow when all of the Forsaken were supposed to be bound and sealed, the world came to believe that Ba'alzamon was the Trolloc name for the Dark One as well. Ba'alzamon implies on many occasions that he could easily kill Rand al'Thor at any time. Despite having an enormous advantage in both strength, experience, and opportunity, he fails to kill Rand and ends up being bested. It is widely speculated that until the point where Rand became strong enough to defeat Ba'alzamon, Ba'alzamon could have easily squashed Rand like an insect at any time. Jalwin Moerad In , Ishamael came to Artur Hawkwing's court as Jalwin Moerad. He became Hawkwing's highest counsellor by summer , and held that position until Artur's death in . He set about wrecking that which Hawkwing had built, advising him to dismiss all Aes Sedai from his service, lay siege to Tar Valon, send his armies across the Aryth Ocean, and refuse Healing on his deathbed. Jalwin Moerad had a volatile temper, and was half mad. He was frequently absent for long periods (which led Tamika, Artur's wife, to distrust him) and anyone who inquired about him closely died. He was openly contemptuous of Aes Sedai. Days after Artur's death, he became counsellor to, and then ordered killed, the three closest contenders for the throne (Marithelle Camaelaine, Norodim Nosokawa and then Elfraed Guitama), one after another. Jalwin disappeared after 40 years, never having aged a day. Release After his permanent release from the Dark One's prison in 997 NE, he hunted Rand al'Thor relentlessly through his dreams (he also pursued Mat Cauthon and Perrin Aybara until he was certain Rand was the Dragon Reborn), attempting to turn him to the Shadow. He battled Rand twice, once somewhere near the Eye of the World, and again in Falme, the second time wounding Rand's side. He was finally killed by Rand stabbing him with the sa'angreal sword Callandor in the Heart of the Stone of Tear; it was only at that time that Rand learned that Ba'alzamon, his sworn enemy and persecutor, was not in fact the Dark One but Ishamael, and that his battle against the Shadow had only just truly begun. Resurrection | living=tom }} Ishamael was presumably resurrected by the Great Lord into a new body with a new name, Moridin (Old Tongue for death). He is now very tall and broad-shouldered, he has very blue eyes and a deep voice and looks to be in his mid twenties with black hair. He has a square chin. As the Watcher, he watches as both Sammael and Graendal spread chaos among the Shaido. He seems amused with Sammael's boasting of a truce with Rand and that he is Nae'blis. Moridin was given the title of Nae'blis by the Dark One, effectively naming him his regent on the Day of the Return, the coveted position that sets him above the other Forsaken. He mostly channels the True Power now, using it to detect both saidar and saidin, and therefore has the saa in his eyes. As Nae'blis, he is now the only person allowed to use the True Power. As the Wanderer, he pulls Rand out of a cavern in Shadar Logoth when Rand is fighting Sammael. Moridin shoots a beam of balefire at a tendril of Mashadar the same time as Rand does and their beams cross over and touch. Perhaps as a consequence of this, they seem to have formed a connection: Rand now often sees Moridin in his mind when he channels. The link works both ways as Moridin is also aware of Rand. The sensation Rand has is of them each touching the other, but not physically. Rand now suffers nausea when he first reaches for saidin and, through his link, feels Moridin also suffer the same nausea. Moridin seems to be furious with this apparent side-effect. He later watches Nynaeve al'Meara, Elayne Trakand and the rest of their group Travel from Ebou Dar. He becomes concerned when he finds out that they have a ter'angreal that can change the weather back to normal. He also is amazed when Aviendha unravels her Gateway without it exploding. Nae'blis He controls Cyndane and Moghedien through the use of cour'souvra, and has started to consolidate the power of the Shadow under his command, as he once did as Ba'alzamon. He has reluctantly rescinded the order to kill Rand as Rand is planning to cleanse saidin. He orders Raefar Kisman, Manel Rochaid, Charl Gedwyn and Peral Torval to get the access keys for the Choedan Kal off him. He did not participate in the Battle near Shadar Logoth. He sets up a meeting in Tel'aran'rhiod, which is made to look like the Ansaline Gardens, where he tells the other Chosen to leave Rand for him alone. Mat and Perrin are to be found and killed however. He also wants to find out who is masquerading as Sammael and sent tens of thousands of Trollocs into the Ways. Later he sets up a meeting between Mesaana and Demandred and rewards Graendal by allowing her to overhear this meeting. During the meeting Graendal spots that his left hand seems stiff and causing him pain, the same hand Rand lost recently. He forbids any rescue attempt for Semirhage as her punishment for trying to kill Rand. Unscheduled meeting While dreaming one night, Rand wakes to find himself in Tel'aran'rhiod; his link to Moridin causing him to wind up in Moridin's lair. While there, Moridin has a fairly genial chat with Rand, informing him that the only way to truly kill a Forsaken is to use balefire (whether this was intentional or just absent-mindedness on Moridin's part is not known) and that there is a link between the two of them that he does not understand. The two of them discuss the timelessness of Rand's struggle and Moridin's belief in its ultimate futility. He also reveals that he is feeling exhausted, and wonders out loud whether the exhaustion he feels is Rand's or his own. He also mentions to Rand that he believes that he knows the truth about the Dark One's intentions; that he intends to destroy creation forever. He goes on to cite his contempt for the other Forsaken, mocking them for believing that they will receive eternal life and power. However, the end of creation seems to actually please him, as he gives a laugh that has "true pleasure in it", as opposed to his other humorless ones. Before leaving Moridin asks Rand why he had come to his lair, but then speculates that it was their link that somehow drew Rand to Moridin's dream. Moridin finds Graendal hiding on a desolate island in the Aryth Ocean. He chastises her for her failure and for causing the death of another Chosen. She attempts to redeem herself by promising the death of Perrin, which Moridin agrees to allow her to attempt, loaning her a dreamspike and the services of Slayer. He also shows her a prophecy showing her the possible death of Perrin. In doing so, he reveals that a chamber within his palace appears to be full of powerful relics from the Age of Legends. Graendal seems to have a very difficult time controlling her fear of him during this meeting as opposed to the last time she met with him. She also makes an observation that Moridin would understand Rand's feelings of guilt for destroying her lair and its inhabitants, but does not elaborate much. During the meeting it appears that he can directly hear the commands of the Dark One without being at Shayol Ghul. He also may be responsible for horribly torturing Lanfear, apparently at a whim. Parallels and Trivia Ishmael was a son of Abraham in the Hebrew Bible who became outcast. Ishmael is considered by some religions as being very wicked but repentant. His alias, Ba'alzamon, may be a reference to and combination of Beelzebub, one of the seven princes of Hell & Ba'al, also one of the seven princes of Hell as well as a name given to several Demons in Christian mythology. Ishamael is master of the board game sha'rah. As Moridin, it appears that he can hear the commands of the Dark One without being at Shayol Ghul. This may not be unique however, as it would seem that Ishamael as Ba'alzamon could communicate with the Dark One in a similar fashion; he appeared to beseech the Dark One for aid in combating Callandor, and he apparently received it. This ability may be connected to his overuse of the True Power, since as Moridin he seems to have only just recently gained the ability, if indeed he has it at all. Ishamael appears to be something of a nihilist, considering his belief in the futility of mankind's struggle against the Dark One and the titles of his books.